Birds Splendid Fairy-Wren

[Ralph]

Taken on the 26-02-2022 just over the border in NSW.
This is a male Splendid Fairy-Wren in eclipse mode, who was happy to be quite close to me taking his photo.

• ILCE-7M3
• 100-400mm F5-6.3 DG DN OS | Contemporary 020
• 379.1 mm
• ƒ/6.3
• 1/250 sec
• ISO 160

• ILCE-7M3
• 100-400mm F5-6.3 DG DN OS | Contemporary 020
• 379.1 mm
• ƒ/6.3
• 1/250 sec
• ISO 160

• ILCE-7M3
• 100-400mm F5-6.3 DG DN OS | Contemporary 020
• 379.1 mm
• ƒ/6.3
• 1/250 sec
• ISO 160

• ILCE-7M3
• 100-400mm F5-6.3 DG DN OS | Contemporary 020
• 379.1 mm
• ƒ/6.3
• 1/250 sec
• ISO 160

• ILCE-7M3
• 100-400mm F5-6.3 DG DN OS | Contemporary 020
• 379.1 mm
• ƒ/6.3
• 1/250 sec
• ISO 160

 

[AlphaWorld]

I am no bird expert - does “eclipse mode” mean “in transition from bright blue mating plumage to dull grey/brown”? I have seen the mating look - very bright - and the dull look for the rest of the year.

I have also seen the superb fairy wren (lesser amounts of blue, but a similar switch back and forth).

Makes me wonder if the person who named them suffered from incurable hyperbole.

 

[Uncle Kevriano]

I am no bird expert - does “eclipse mode” mean “in transition from bright blue mating plumage to dull grey/brown”? I have seen the mating look - very bright - and the dull look for the rest of the year.

I have also seen the superb fairy wren (lesser amounts of blue, but a similar switch back and forth).

Makes me wonder if the person who named them suffered from incurable hyperbole.

Yes it does.

Great shots Ralph. A bit of nervous Bokeh is annoying but can't be avoided there. Superb little bird.

 

[Ralph]

I am no bird expert - does “eclipse mode” mean “in transition from bright blue mating plumage to dull grey/brown”? I have seen the mating look - very bright - and the dull look for the rest of the year.

I have also seen the superb fairy wren (lesser amounts of blue, but a similar switch back and forth).

Makes me wonder if the person who named them suffered from incurable hyperbole.

As mating season comes they go from looking quite close to the females to the bright blues as you would see in books. And this is called the eclipse mode.

Yes it does.

Great shots Ralph. A bit of nervous Bokeh is annoying but can't be avoided there. Superb little bird.

Thanks and being less than 2 to 3 foot away from this one as he jumped about not caring about me the full focus was just on him and all else was there to take care of itself.
Honestly for me I think is show a little more of what he was doing in the shots as you can see i he is in the low weeds where the seed would be that he would be looking for.. But on the one with the moth in the top left corner I wish I had a faster shutter speed to capture that clearer.
On this day I was going from the ground to mid tree then back again on different birds where I was.

 

[Sdawes]

Gorgeous little bird